Panthers blow opportunity to clinch NFC South with loss to Seahawks

Entering Sunday, the Carolina Panthers needed a win over the Seattle Seahawks and a Tampa Bay Buccaneers loss to the Miami Dolphins to clinch their first division title since 2015. Instead, they did not look prepared to do so in a 27-10 loss to the Seahawks.

Additionally, the Buccaneers (7-9) suffered a 20-17 loss to the Dolphins, marking their seventh defeat in their last eight games. Had the Panthers (8-8) taken care of business, the Tampa Bay loss would have given them the NFC South title. With both teams dropping their Week 17 contests, a Week 18 clash between the two rivals will determine who wins the division, assuming the Atlanta Falcons do not win out and force a three-way tie that puts Carolina in regardless.

Panthers give away NFC South opportunity

If the Panthers were at least competitive, a blown opportunity to clinch the division may not have been as hard to take. However, Carolina put together a performance to forget at the worst possible time.

The Panthers had 10 first downs in the game and went 1-of-11 on third down. Even worse, they had 139 total yards of offense and only 54 passing yards from quarterback Bryce Young, who was 14-of-24 with zero TDs and one interception. To put into perspective how ugly Carolina's performance was, its leading receiver, Jalen Coker, only had 16 yards.

The Panthers were so bad they went to victory formation following a one-yard TD run from Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet that put the game out of reach, 27-10, with 2:31 to play. Seattle ultimately kneeled down to end the game after the turnover on downs, but that speaks to how the game was going for Carolina.

Young has had some breakout performances this season, including a season-high 448 pass yards on Nov. 16 against the Falcons and three TDs in a win over the Los Angeles Rams on Nov. 30. He was far from that when it mattered most on Sunday, leaving the division up for grabs in Week 18.

According to Josh Dubow of the Associated Press, the 2022 Buccaneers, 2020 Washington Commanders, 2014 Panthers and 2010 Seahawks are the only four teams that have made the playoffs with a losing record (excluding the 1982 strike season when two teams made the expanded playoffs at 4-5). That could happen for a fifth time in Week 18 if the Buccaneers win or the Falcons win out and help the Panthers get in, even with a loss.